Reading the Gospels

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Oct 10, 1911

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 38, No. 40.

Reading the Gospels

Sunday	October 15	Mark 9, 10
Monday	" 16	" 11-13
Tuesday	" 17	" 14
Wednesday	" 18	" 15, 16
Thursday	" 19	John 1, 2
Friday	" 20	" 3, 4
Sabbath	" 21	" 5, 6

We close the Gospel of Mark in our first four days' reading. Of wonderful interest are the closing chapters of each of the Gospels. In the early part of our Lord's life, there are only typical instances given of His teaching, of His miracles, of His wonderful works. These typical instances, however, are wonderfully comprehensive. Not a soul who has lived since but what may find in them hope for his condition, however sad it may be. But in the last year of our Lord's life, and especially in the last few weeks, there is wonderful detail given. Every moment throbs with importance, every event is full of meaning. The last part of the 16th chapter of Mark has been questioned by some of the textual critics. The note in the American Revised Version states that two oldest Greek manuscripts, and some other authorities, omit from verse 9 to the end. Nevertheless, some of the older manuscripts have this passage. Simply because it is omitted from the two older manuscripts would not indicate that it does not belong to the Gospel. It would be easy, in these ancient manuscripts, to lose some of the sheets upon which the Gospel had been transcribed; and much more easy to lose the last than those which would come within the book. And yet, it is not uncommon to find whole passages missing from some of the earlier Gospels. Alford believes that it is genuine inspiration, tho it may not have been written at the time that Mark wrote the Gospel. It might have been added later. Everything internal indicates that it is of the same authority as what precedes, and it is in perfect harmony with the rest of the Scripture.

The Gospel by John was written by the beloved apostle about the year 90, or a little later than that—some have thought just before his death, while he was at Ephesus. The style of it is very simple, but the thought is many times very profound. Sometimes it is difficult to distinguish between what he reports our Lord as saying, and what he himself says. The one thing, however, which stands out above everything else in the Gospel is that our Lord came to give life. Christ is the central object of faith, and the source of life. In the very beginning of the Gospel (verses 1-14) there are set forth three great things—the person of Christ, what it meant to reject Him, and what it means to accept Him—the new life in the regeneration, as children of God. John himself is supposed to be the younger son of Zebedee and Salome. It has been suggested, and it seems quite probable, that his mother was the sister of our Lord's mother. Consequently, he was cousin of Jesus. See John 19:25.

We sincerely wish and pray that our readers may find day by day life in these precious words of life.